This invention relates to conveyor belts and, more particularly, to modular plastic conveyor belts formed of rows of plastic belt modules pivotally interlinked by transverse pivot rods.
Because they do not corrode, are light weight, and are easy to clean, unlike metal conveyor belts, plastic conveyor belts are used widely, especially in conveying food products. Modular plastic conveyor belts are made up of molded plastic modular links, or belt modules, that can be arranged side by side in rows of selectable width. A series of spaced apart link ends extending from each side of the modules include aligned apertures to accommodate a pivot rod. The link ends along one end of a row of modules are interconnected with the link ends of an adjacent row. A pivot rod journaled in the aligned apertures of the side-by-side and end-to-end connected modules forms a hinge between adjacent rows. Rows of belt modules are then connected together to form an endless conveyor belt capable of articulating about a drive sprocket.
In many industrial applications, conveyor belts are used to carry products along paths including curved segments. Belts capable of flexing side-wise to follow curved paths are referred to as side-flexing, turn, or radius belts. As a radius belt negotiates a turn, the belt must be able to fan out because the edge of the belt at the outside of the turn follows a longer path than the edge at the inside of the turn. In order to fan out, a modular plastic radius belt typically has provisions that allow it to collapse at the inside of a turn or to spread out at the outside of the turn.
Apertures slotted in the direction of travel of the belt are commonly provided in the link ends on at least one side of the modules to facilitate the collapsing and spreading of the belt.
The requirement of following a curved path causes problems not found in straight-running belts. As one example, radius belts, especially if tightly tensioned or running fast and lightly loaded, tend to rise out of the conveyor support around a turn. As another example, because belt pull is concentrated in the outer portion of the belt as it rounds a turn, outer link ends are more likely to fail unless otherwise strengthened or bolstered.
There are other problems with some common belt designs. For example, stresses can be molded into the plastic modules during the manufacturing process. Sharp, as opposed to curved, junctions between molded features on a belt module are more likely to form concentrated stress regions. When such modules make up a conveyor belt, operation of the belt increases the stress in those regions. In a radius belt, in which the pulling load is unevenly distributed across the width of the belt as it rounds a turn, the problem is exacerbated. One way to solve the problem is to add more material to the belt, but that makes the belt heavier, increases the production cost due to the larger molding cycle and closes in some of the desirable open area that allows for drainage or air flow.
Another problem with some structures of radius belts is compression of the modules transverse to the direction of belt travel. A radius belt bricklayed to a width of, for example one meter, may compress by three to four millimeters as the belt rounds a turn, which can cause the belt to come out of the conveyor support. Belts having the corrugated configuration shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,248 to Horton are especially susceptible to bending and compression of this type.
What is needed is a modular radius conveyor belt that is resistant to compression and that improves the strength of the belt.
The present invention meets the above-described need by providing an endless conveyor belt formed of plastic belt modules and capable of following a curved path. The modules include first and second module surfaces, i.e., a top, product-conveying surface and a bottom, sprocket-driven surface. An intermediate section extends across the width of each module transverse to the direction of belt travel. The intermediate section may be formed in part by a web and in part by a thin, corrugated strip having a pair of essentially parallel walls. The corrugated strip forms a series of regularly spaced alternating ridges and valleys along each wall. As an alternative the intermediate portion may be defined entirely by a corrugated strip or stiffening web, as described herein.
Link ends extend outward from the ridges on each wall of the corrugated strip. Each link end has a leg portion attached at a ridge of the strip and a thick distal portion at the end of the link end distant from the corrugated strip. Transverse holes in the link ends extending from respective walls of a module are aligned to accommodate a pivot rod. To permit the belt to follow a curved path, the pivot rod openings in at least one of the link ends extending from one of the walls of the intermediate section are slotted longitudinally in the direction of belt travel. When the link ends of consecutive rows of side-by-side modules are intercalated, the pivot rod serves as a hinge pin in a hinged joint between consecutive interlinked rows.
The leg portions of the respective link ends have different widths. The link ends having the transverse slots are wider than the link ends having the transverse openings such that the cross-sectional areas of the leg portions are approximately equal.
Each wall of the corrugated strip forms a series of arched recesses between the leg portions of the link ends. The recesses are large enough to provide room for a thick link end of an interlinked module of an adjacent row to collapse into the recess or to rotate as belt rows fan out going around a turn. Because the recesses along one wall overlap in a transverse direction with the recesses along the other wall, additional space for collapsing is provided.